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Anti-Twitter Protesters Fail to Understand the Concept of Irony

Scott Lucas | Photo: Mashable | November 5, 2013

They used Twitter to get the word out.

The Twitter Headquarters.

When Twitter's IPO begins at 6:30 a.m. on Thursday, it won't just be day traders getting out of bed early. An activist group called SF Rising has declared their intention to stage an anti-Twitter rally outside the firm's mid-Market headquarters at the same time.

The information on their site doesn't list any policy demands, though it does make sure to inform us that Twitter is "one of the big tech companies in SF." "We want to Tweet them their impacts," the site says, "and their on-going social irresponsibility to the City." They go on to draw a link between the Central Market tax expenditure and the "crisis of affordability" in the city's rising rents and eviction rates. The protestors have scheduled a second rally for noon. They also "demand real community benefit agreements"—but they're going to make you show up again to a third rally at 5:45 PM to find out what those are.

The capper to all of this? Organizers are asking folks to join in the protest by tweeting their Twitter horror stories under #ThrownOutByTwitter. At press time, the most recent tweet? "Gonna TaskRabbit someone to protest for me at this anti-tech rally"

Wonder why the protestors are targeting the company, rather than the elected officials who voted for the tax break? Or how they expect to build a wide coalition when they want people to show up from 6:30 in the morning till 5:45 in the evening? Don't understand how they could use Twitter to protest against Twitter?